Guys may think I’m going to be picking on them here, but we ladies can be just as uptight about our shows; don’t even THINK about making me miss Criminal Minds, not for any reason!! When you’re living separately, you are free to watch your shows as you like, even choosing to schedule activities and outings around what times/days work better for you. There is a comfort zone involved with our favourite shows, and there can be a real attachment. The battle begins when you have you share, and your tastes are different.

It can be hard to adjust to this, especially if you’ve watched the same show for many seasons; it’s a part of your routine, and not easy to give up. She wants to watch Blind Date, he wants to watch the game (whatever game that might be), so what do they do? Is it worth fighting over? In the moment it may seem so, but it really doesn’t have to be. With the advent of things like digital cable and the PVR, this doesn’t have to be such a dilema anymore. Digital cable allows for time-shifting, which means if the game is on from 7-9, she may be able to watch her show at 10, on a different channel. Or, one of them can PVR their program and watch it later. It doesn’t have to be complicated! If this isn’t an option for you and you still have a VCR, you can record your show, similar to a PVR. If that isn’t an option for you, then you can work out a deal: he gets to watch the game, but then he’s on dishes while she grabs a bubble bath!

What did we do? When we bought the new tv, we scored a deal that included the PVR, so that’s been our solution. I’m home in the mornings, so in the morning while I have breakfast I watch the Y&R I’d PVR-ed the day before. I get to watch and enjoy my cheesy daytime drama, with the added bonus of not having to listen to him moan and complain the entire time about Jack Abbott’s timeless swoop. If I PVR so he can watch a game (or something else I don’t want to watch), it’s a chance for me to read my book. It’s “together time” but “apart time” while he watches and I read, side by side.